Euronews

Eight female badminton players at the Olympics have been expelled from Olympic competition by the Badminton World Federation for not trying to win their matches.

The Federation, which is the sport’s governing body, said the four pairs of players were guilty of “not using one’s best efforts to win a match.”

They had been charged with deliberately losing group stage contests to secure an easier draw through the Olympic tournament.

One pair from China, one from Indonesia and two from South Korea were handed the punishment at a disciplinary hearing on Wednesday.

Fans jeered during one doubles match between China and South Korea, with the referee stopping the game at one point to warn the players as they deliberately sprayed shots and hit serves into the net to concede points.

The players involved were China’s world champions Wang Xiaoli and Yu Yang, Indonesia’s Greysia Polii and Meiliana Jauhari and two South Korean pairs – Jung Kyung-eun and Kim Ha-na, and Ha Jung-eun and Kim Min-jung.